I have to admit, I had never heard of this before. I love scrolling through Maggie’s blog to find an amazing food to share, however, this one stumped me. I was intrigued as Autumn and Pumpkin (as mentioned a couple weeks back) is upon us, so anything pumpkin has my attention.
After searching around, Pumpkin Butter seems like a great alternative as a spread, but also mixed with cottage cheese as a sweet, nutritious treat. Have a look and link directly to Maggie’s blog via recipe below or her bio. Enjoy!
~A
Can a person live on pumpkin alone? Well, as long as it is the season, I am going to try! I made this pumpkin butter with no added sugar, so it is ridiculously low in calories. Squash is so good for you, and chock full of fiber, and I didn’t want to muck it up with a bunch of sugar your body doesn’t necessarily need. Yes, your body does need carbohydrates to function, and you should feed your body good, complex carbs. For me, carbs comprise about 30-40% of what I eat. Your body does NOT need refined white sugar, however! There are more nutritious ways to get your carbohydrates. Now if you do not want to use Splenda or another artificial sweetener, you can use raw sugar, maple syrup, honey, or agave syrup. The calorie count will just be higher. This way is just more in line with my weight loss goals!
You will need:
4 sugar pumpkins, peeled, diced, and scooped; yields about 12 pounds
3-5 Cups water
1/4 Cup pumpkin pie spice
1/4 Cup cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp allspice
2 Cups granulated splenda
1 orange, juiced
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
In a large soup or pasta pot, or in your slow cooker, simmer the pumpkin and water on an extremely low heat for at least 10 to 12 hours. Every two hours or so, stir and scrape down the sides. If the pumpkin begins to get too thick or burn on the edges, turn down your heat and add a little more water. Blend the cooked pumpkin in a blender or with an immersion blender until very smooth. Add the spices and salt, and simmer for another two hours. Add the orange juice and vinegar, and mix thoroughly. While the pumpkin butter is still hot, ladle into sterilized jars and top with sterilized lids; pressure can at around 12-13 pounds of pressure for 60 minutes.
This recipe yields about 21 1/2 volumetric cups. A quarter cup – a pretty massive helping of pumpkin butter – is only 19 calories! Oh my! For this serving, there are 4.7 grams of carbohydrates, 0.6 grams of protein, and only 0.1 grams of fat
My name is Maggie Jasmin, and starting in January 2013, I dedicated myself to a new fitness journey, and have since lost 115 pounds. I move more, pick up heavy things, think intelligently about my food, and try to be the healthiest I can every day. This doesn't mean I gave up the foods I love – I just make them healthy! I blog and post recipes about my comfort food turned health food at 
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